A New Christmas Meaning
by tardisseeker
Summary: Two months after the closure of Danny Latimer's death, it's Christmas in Broadchurch. Alec's dead, Jenny is now apart of the Miller family and Christmas time will bring a new meaning to Broadchurch.
1. Chapter 1

Two Months Later

Snow had fallen over the small town of Broadchurch; the ocean was colder than ever and the skies were gray.

Now days, everything was quiet and everything felt big and lonely. Someone dear too many people had been lost.

"Jenny, you're not going to have time to buy a present for Tom if you don't hurry up!" Ellie Miller yelled up the stairs at a firmly closed door. When she didn't get a reply she sighed and went back into the kitchen. She was making her other son; Ben; his lunch.

Up behind the closed door, Jenny stood over her dresser doing a short braid in her dark brown hair. When she finished she tied it up with a blue elastic and flipped the braid over her shoulder. She looked at herself and sighed. She was never satisfied with how she looked, even when she tried her hardest; which was never very often.

She backed up and grabbed her purple hand bag that she had gotten for her birthday last month that had been resting on her bed. She threw it over her shoulder and opened her door. She passed her brothers room that was empty at the moment; Tom was at school and her baby brother was in the kitchen.

She hopped down the stairs two at a time and landed with a little jump at the end. She smiled and turned into the kitchen. "I'm gonna head out now ok?" She told her mom who was bent over the kitchen sink washing tomatos. Her head shoot up and she looked at her deeply. "I was just making you lunch though." She said disappointed. Jenny stopped to play with her brothers tiny feet before she replied to Ellie. "I have to buy Tom something before the shops close. They close early tonight remember?" She said to Ellie as she put on her shoes. Ellie dried her hands on a towel and then walked over to the drawer to get a knife. "Ok, just don't be too long." She said to Jenny. She got her knife and then placed it on the counter. She then walked over to Jenny who was about to leave. She embraced her in her arms and stroked her hair. "It's all going to be different isn't it?" She asked Jenny. Jenny paused as she thought about the best words she could say to Ellie. "Sadly, different for the both of us."

I thought this would be a nice Christmas treat for me to write but I'm practically making myself cry... Please leave some reviews for it, I'll write more later!


	2. Chapter 2

When Ellie released Jenny from the hug Jenny backed up and sadly smiled at her mom. Ellie smiled back. Jenny hadn't seen her mom smile much since she adopted her and this made her hold back happy tears.

She pulled her purse back onto her shoulder and nodded to her mom as she opened the door and stepped into the nippy air. She closed the door behind herself and leaned on it for a second as she took a deep breath. She steadied herself and then bounced off the door and onto her feet.

She made her way down the street that was layered with ice. Every step she took she practically slid farther then she meant too.

All the houses around her were decorated with lights and ornaments; some even had moving Santa's that waved as you walked by. Her house wasn't decorated like these ones. She didn't think that her mom would even think about decorations with everything else going through her head. They had a tree and that was all that really mattered.

The main street in Broadchurch was layered with salt to avoid people slipping on the ice which made Jenny much happier. All these shops were decorated too and some people even stopped in front off some and admired them. Lots of people walked in and out of the shops with big bags full of presents for their families. Every person Jenny saw made her smile with dread stretched in her eyes.

At the very end of the street there was a toy store that Jenny thought would be perfect for Tom. She pushed open the door and she heard a small bell go off in the shop.

"Hello!" An older man greeted her as she took her first steps into the store. Jenny smiled at the man and nodded. The store smelt of cookies and the ceiling was coated in red tinsel. She walked through the rows of toys and goodies occasionally stopping at something that interested her. She knew what Tom liked but she found that this was quite hard. She never shopped for presents for others; she never even got presents. This was her first Christmas with a family and she didn't want to mess up.

Three rows in she come across a skateboard that was hidden behind a Barbie: Fairy toy doll. She smiled as she saw the pattern on the back; blue, red and green stripes with a flame down the center, Tom would love it! She grabbed the skateboard by the wheels and put it under her arm and walked back to the front of the store with a smile etched upon her face.

The older man was behind the cash, sporting some brown spectacles on his nose as he wrote on a piece of paper. Jenny placed the skateboard gently on the table in front of the man's paper. She saw his eyes look sharply at her and then he smiled. She smiled back. "It's a nice one isn't it?" He asked her as he took the skateboard and checked the price. "Yeah, it's for my brother; Tom." She replied still beaming with pride that she was successful in finding something for him.

The man typed a bunch of numbers into the cash and then reached under the desk for a bag. "How is Ellie?" He asked as he put the skateboard in the bag. His eyes showed sadness.

Jenny paused and swallowed some spit back down her throat before she answered. "She's alright, yeah." Jenny told him. He handed her the bag and she reached over the counter to take it. She lifted it back down next to her and let her arm relax. "And you?" The man asked Jenny. She reached into her purse and got her money to pay the man. "Fine." She answered him with a smile. She gave him the money and he reached over to take it. When his hand touched hers he held it and smiled softly at her. "Alec was a great man; he did the best he could." He said to her quietly. Jenny stared at the man with sadness. Alec was the best man she ever knew and he meant the world to her but now he was gone. All the other people that had left her out of choice and then it was him who left her without any choice. He wanted to keep going; he wanted to look after her and finish what he had started but the world didn't agree.

Jenny quickly pulled her hand away from the man leaving the money in his. "Thank you; for the skateboard." Jenny thanked the man as she backed away ready to leave the store. He just stared at Jenny as she pushed open the door and left. The bell on the door rang as the door closed behind her.

Jenny took a few deep breaths as she walked down the street back towards home. It had started to snow now and she pulled her jacket closer to her body to protect herself from the cold.

Everybody around her felt sorry for her and she never knew how she felt about that. It should never have been her they were sorry for, it should always be Ellie, who lost faith in herself and quit her job. It was her family that fell apart because of her stupid husband, not hers. Everything was wrong but everything felt right at the same time.

Again any reviews please!


	3. Chapter 3

Jenny walked up her driveway slowly trying not to slip on the icy ground. She reached the door and took the cold handle in her hand and pulled. A flash of heat came through the entrance and Jenny stepped in happily.

Ellie quickly came around the corner holding a dish cloth and a plate. "Oh, you're home!" She gasped as she looked down at the bag in Jenny's hand. Jenny took off her wet shoes and placed them on the mat. Ben's little shoes made Jenny smile to herself. "How were the streets?" Ellie asked her as she walked back into the kitchen. Jenny stood up and steadied herself. "Fine, it's just icy out on the driveway, be careful ok?" She answered her mom.

Jenny walked into the kitchen with a bit of a skip to her walk. She smiled when she noticed that her brother still wasn't home. She put the bag from the shop down on the table and smiled. "Guess what?" She said to her mom. Ellie turned to look at her with her eyebrows raised. "I found the best present for Tom!" She said happily. Her mom smiled and threw her arms up and bubbles floated away. "Really?!" Ellie asked her as she came over to the table to see. She reached over to open the bag but Jenny took the bag away from her quickly. "Nope, not for you." She said laughing. She turned around with the bag in her hands and walked out of the kitchen. Ellie stood in the kitchen smiling to herself and laughing.

Jenny closed the door to her bedroom and threw the bag on her bed. She bent down and reached under her bed and pulled out some wrapping paper she had picked up at the store a few weeks ago. She stood up and went to her desk for tape and scissors.

Back on the floor she wrapped her present for her brother with a smile on her face. She was proud and she just knew that her brother would love it.

When she had finished she sat up and grabbed a pen. She signed her name with a heart on the end. She hoped that he wouldn't think it was tacky. She finished and looked down at the finished product. It was beautiful; just what he needed, a bit of beautiful. Now, she had finished all of the presents for her family; for the very first time.

/~~~/

Over the next two days Jenny and her family rushed through the house preparing for Christmas day; Tom didn't have any presents bought, they still needed a tree, there wasn't a Turkey left in stores (they settled for ham) and Jenny was rushing around the house.

She wanted her first real Christmas to be perfect; even if a part of her heart was missing.

She lost a lot when she started to travel with John; her whole family, her friends; that whole life went missing. And then after three years of traveling they landed in Broadchurch and then this happened; her heart rested here and so did Alec's. Her new family was now the best of her and she needed to keep it that way.

/~~~/

Jenny slightly opened her sun lit eyes. She stretched out her arms and took a deep breath to wake herself up a bit. She paused as she realized what the day would bring; Christmas.

She quickly threw back her bed sheets and jumped onto the cold hardwood floor. She slid her slippers on her feet and grabbed her robe off of the end of her bed and threw it on. She slid across the floor and landed by the door which she through open. She went next door and banged on her brother's doors to wake them up; she did the same to her mom. "It's Christmas!" She yelled excitedly. She turned and ran down the stairs as fast as she could; not worrying about her speed. All she saw was her foot miss the step and her body fall down. Her breath caught in her chest as she hit the floor at the bottom of the stairs. She lay there, bewildered and in pain as the light left her eyes.

/~~~/

"There she is, she's almost here." Jenny her a muffled voice as she started to come around. She turned onto her side to see who it was; Ellie. Her mom's face was flooded with nervousness and fear as she stared down at her. "Hello sweetie." She greeted her as she came to her senses. "Where am I?" Jenny asked as she raised a hand to her head. Her hand was freezing but her forehead was burning up. "Hospital." Her mom answered her sadly. Jenny paused as a sick feeling came around. "But it's Christmas." She said to her mom worried. Ellie gave a small, sad smile to Jenny and kindly said, "I know."

Jenny turned back to rest on her back. It hit her hard, the fact that she was here on Christmas. She ruined it for her whole family; she herself had been looking forward to this so bad and now she was here.

She looked around the room, checking it out when suddenly she realised exactly where she was. This was the room Alec had died in; this was the bed he last was in. Her heart started to pound and her eyes went blurry; nest thing she knew she was out again.

/~~~/

The next morning Jenny was woken with a loud bang. Her eyes flung open and she turned to her side quickly. Broken glass was all over the floor and in the corner was her mother; with her face in her hands, crying. "Mom?" Jenny asked quietly, fearing that she might upset her mom. Ellie turned slowly to look at her, red faced and sad. "What's wrong?" Jenny continued. Her mom walked over and kneeled down beside her. She took her hand in hers and patted it. "Sweetie, I'm so sorry." She said as the tears began in her eyes again. Jenny sported a puzzled look and her mother looked at the floor to recuperate. She raised her head and stared right at Jenny. "You have heart arrhythmia..."

The End

Hope you liked it


End file.
